While the Axis powers may have been defeated in Europe, the Allies still struggled to regain the Pacific, which the Japanese controlled. At first, the Japanese were successful at capturing various islands in the Pacific, yet the Japanese ultimately were proved to be weak defending them against the Allied powers. Three events that occurred in 1942 turned the war in the Pacific to the Allies’ favor: the Doolittle raid, in which Lieutenant Colonel James H. Doolittle led 16 bombers to invade Japan, the Battle of the Coral Sea, which was fought by airplanes in Australian seas, and the Battle of the Midway, in which the US defended Midway Island near Hawaii.
The Two Campaigns
After the three victories, the Allies decided to create two campaigns— one to fight in New Guinea and one to fight in the Solomon Islands— and the two campaigns would meet at to take over the port of Rabaul in New Britain. In the New Guinea campaign, the Allies pushed back Japanese troops, taking the lives of numerous people, until the Japanese surrendered. In the Solomon Island campaign, the Allies attacked Guadalcanal, a Japanese air base. In the Battle of Guadalcanal, the Allies cut off Japanese trade, and the exhausted Japanese eventually evacuated the island. The end result was 15,000 Japanese deaths along with 4,800 Japanese naval deaths, and about 6,500 American deaths. Later, the Allies decided to bomb the port of Rabaul, rather than plan an invasion.
Tarawa Beach, one of the many battles fought while the Allies island hopped
The Philippine Islands
Japanese kamikaze
After the bombing of Rabaul, the Allies island hopped, or moved from island to island, to reach the Philippine Islands. The Japanese defended the Philippine Islands with ferocity in the Battle of Leyte Gulf, but eventually lost, with 10,000 Japanese deaths. The Japanese even introduced kamikazes, or Japanese suicide bombers, a dangerous weapon used against the Allies.
Nuclear Bombs End Pacific War
A bomb dropped on Hiroshima leads to catastrophe
The weak Japanese were almost defeated, but they did not give up. Finally, Vice President Harry S. Truman decided to drop nuclear bombs on Japan to end the war quickly. A nuclear bomb was dropped on Iwo Jima, resulting in 70,000 to 140,000 civilian deaths, and a second one was dropped on Nagasaki, killing about 40,000 people. The Japanese emperor decided to surrender, and the Allies and the Japanese met in the battleship Missourion September 3, 1945.
Victory in the Pacific: Driving the Japanese out
Introduction
While the Axis powers may have been defeated in Europe, the Allies still struggled to regain the Pacific, which the Japanese controlled. At first, the Japanese were successful at capturing various islands in the Pacific, yet the Japanese ultimately were proved to be weak defending them against the Allied powers. Three events that occurred in 1942 turned the war in the Pacific to the Allies’ favor: the Doolittle raid, in which Lieutenant Colonel James H. Doolittle led 16 bombers to invade Japan, the Battle of the Coral Sea, which was fought by airplanes in Australian seas, and the Battle of the Midway, in which the US defended Midway Island near Hawaii.
The Two Campaigns
After the three victories, the Allies decided to create two campaigns— one to fight in New Guinea and one to fight in the Solomon Islands— and the two campaigns would meet at to take over the port of Rabaul in New Britain. In the New Guinea campaign, the Allies pushed back Japanese troops, taking the lives of numerous people, until the Japanese surrendered. In the Solomon Island campaign, the Allies attacked Guadalcanal, a Japanese air base. In the Battle of Guadalcanal, the Allies cut off Japanese trade, and the exhausted Japanese eventually evacuated the island. The end result was 15,000 Japanese deaths along with 4,800 Japanese naval deaths, and about 6,500 American deaths. Later, the Allies decided to bomb the port of Rabaul, rather than plan an invasion.
The Philippine Islands
After the bombing of Rabaul, the Allies island hopped, or moved from island to island, to reach the Philippine Islands. The Japanese defended the Philippine Islands with ferocity in the Battle of Leyte Gulf, but eventually lost, with 10,000 Japanese deaths. The Japanese even introduced kamikazes, or Japanese suicide bombers, a dangerous weapon used against the Allies.
Nuclear Bombs End Pacific War
The weak Japanese were almost defeated, but they did not give up. Finally, Vice President Harry S. Truman decided to drop nuclear bombs on Japan to end the war quickly. A nuclear bomb was dropped on Iwo Jima, resulting in 70,000 to 140,000 civilian deaths, and a second one was dropped on Nagasaki, killing about 40,000 people. The Japanese emperor decided to surrender, and the Allies and the Japanese met in the battleship Missourion September 3, 1945.